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DENVER — Left-hander Kyle Freeland Ernie Banks Jersey , the most consistent Colorado starter, will take the mound Thursday as the Rockies attempt to win their four-game series with the Arizona Diamondbacks.Colorado second baseman DJ LeMahieu belted a two-run homer with one out in the ninth Wednesday — his first career walk-off hit — to give the Rockies a 5-4 victory, their second in this series.The Rockies (80-65) lead the National League West by 1 1/2 games over the Los Angeles Dodgers and 3 1/2 over the Diamondbacks. Arizona (77-69), losers of nine of its past 12 games, is four games back in the scramble for the second NL wild-card spot.Article continues below ...The Rockies, winners of eight of their past 11 games, are 20-9 in games started by Freeland (14-7, 2.91 ERA), who will be opposed by Clay Buchholz (7-2, 2.01) — a vital addition since joining the Arizona rotation in late May. He will be making his Coors Field debut.Freeland has been dominant there this season, going 8-2 with a 2.21 ERA in 13 starts. Freeland is 5-0, 2.03 in his past seven turns, all of which the Rockies have won.Freeland http://www.chicagocubsteamshop.com/authentic-ryne-sandberg-jersey , a 25-year-old Denver native in his second full season in the majors, is 0-1 with a 4.96 ERA in three starts this season against the Diamondbacks, the last July 21, and 1-2, 4.60 against them in six career starts.“Kyle’s game stays pretty consistent,” Rockies manager Bud Black said. “Command of the fastball (to) both sides of the plate. When he goes in, I think he’s got to elevate it a little bit with the fastball — belt high to the hands. Down and away with the fastball. The slider down underneath the right-handed swing. Mix in the change, keep them off balance with the change of velocities with the changeup. Preferably down and away with some action, which he’s very capable (of doing). Mix in a couple curveballs, which Kyle’s done a really good job this year of bringing that into his game. “Kyle’s game has become pretty consistent. It’s something Kyle should be proud of, the step that he made last year to where we are now.”Buchholz, 34, unable to find a big league job after last season Billy Williams Jersey , signed a minor league deal with Kansas City. He went 1-0, 1.59 with the Royals’ Triple-A Omaha affiliate and excercised the May 1 opt-out date in his contract and signed a minor league deal with the Diamondbacks.Arizona general manager Mike Hazen and several of his assistants were in the Red Sox front office when Buchholz signed with Boston after being drafted in the first round in 2005, and Arizona manager Torey Lovullo was a Boston coach when Buchholz pitched for the Red Sox.Buchholz threw a no-hitter Sept. 1, 2007, in his second major league start, went 17-7 with a 2.33 ERA in 2010 and made the Amerian League All-Star team. He was an all-star again in 2013 before enduring a succession of injuries.Buchholz made three minor league starts for the Diamondbacks before joining their rotation May 20. He missed a month with a left oblique strain but returned to the rotation July 24 and has gone 5-1, 1.66 in his past nine starts.Asked whether it’s more rewarding to be pitching as well as he has now as opposed to the outset of his career, Buchholz said, “Yeah, probably just for the simple fact that there were a lot of people that wrote me off, and I wasn’t ready to be done playing.”Said Hazen: “He’s been healthy, and I think you’re seeing the true pitcher emerge. He’s not the guy he used to be with pitches that everyone oohed and awed over at the time. Now you’re watching this guy really pitch. It’s fun to watch. He’s obviously shot above and beyond anything we could’ve hoped. I give a lot of credit to him. He’s one of the leaders of our clubhouse, and you just see the maturity every day with him.”Buchholz’s one career start against Colorado came in 2016 http://www.chicagocubsteamshop.com/authentic-jon-lester-jersey , when he allowed six runs in five innings and took the loss. MILWAUKEE — With right fielder Gregory Polanco out for the remainder of the year following shoulder surgery, Pittsburgh Pirates manager Clint Hurdle plans to rotate playing time among four players during the final weeks of the regular season. On Friday, Jordan Luplow got the start in right field and Pablo Reyes started in left as the Pirates opened up a three-game series against the Milwaukee Brewers at Miller Park. Reyes, Adam Frazier and rookie Kevin Kramer will also see time in right field before the season wraps up on Sept. 30.“You’re going to see Frazier out there when we want Frazier and Kramer in the lineup, because only one can play second base,” Hurdle said before Friday’s game. “Luplow’s going to be the beneficiary, I would imagine, of the most time out there. Reyes might find his way out there. Outside of that, there’s really nobody else to look at, from my perspective.”Article continues below ...Polanco dislocated his shoulder sliding into second base a week ago and underwent surgery earlier this week to repair his labrum. He led the team with 23 home runs and 81 RBIs at the time of the injury.“There’s a degree of disappointment,” Hurdle said. “There’s a degree of angst. However, at the end of the day, he needs to feel what he needs to feel. And there’ll be a time when he’s going to say Fergie Jenkins Jersey , ‘OK, now it’s time to go back to work,’ and Gregory will go back to work.“He’ll have the support of his family, he’ll have the support of the organization, he’ll have the support of a lot of people. He’s a man that’s always been self-motivated, focused. It’s just what’s next for him right now. To be unfortunate, however, that part’s already over. The unfortunate part is over. The injury’s over. Now is the healing, the rehab, and the strengthening and then the getting ready to play, whenever that is. We’ll look forward to that.”The Pirates will face Milwaukee right-hander Zach Davies (2-5, 4.75 ERA) for the first time this season when the series resumes Saturday night.Davies has been impressive in his two starts since returning from a three-month stint on the disabled list, allowing only three total runs with nine strikeouts and a pair of walks over 10 innings. He did not get a decision in either of those starts http://www.chicagocubsteamshop.com/authentic-greg-maddux-jersey , however.“I was ready,” Davies said of his return after battling through shoulder and back injuries. “I was healthy, and I knew it. I knew where my stuff was at, I knew my body was healthy.”Davies went 2-1 with a 3.70 in four starts against the Pirates last season, but is 2-3 with a 6.49 ERA in seven career starts against Pittsburgh.Milwaukee won Friday’s game 7-4. The Pirates have dropped two in a row and three of their last four to Milwaukee after winning eight of the first 10 meetings this season. A victory Saturday would clinch the Brewers’ second series victory over the Pirates this season and their eighth series in a row overall. They continue to keep the pressure on the NL Central-leading Cubs, trailing Chicago by just 1 1/2 games. They are also protecting their lead over the Cardinals and now the Dodgers for the top NL wild-card spot. Milwaukee has a four-game lead on both of those teams.The Pirates’ starter on Saturday will be Ivan Nova (8-9, 4.17). He ended a personal three-game losing streak by pitching six scoreless innings in a 5-1 victory over the Marlins last Saturday. Nova is 2-2 with a 3.03 ERA in six career starts against Milwaukee, and he started one game against the Brewers this season, allowing one run and seven hits in 4 2/3 innings in a game Pittsburgh won 2-1 on July 14.